Liverpool have quite a number of hurdles to clear following Jurgen Klopp’s shock announcement to the globe yesterday.
Contract situations with key stars, including Mo Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold, will be a priority for whoever next comes in through the doors of the AXA training centre.
“There is plenty of uncertainty given three key senior players – Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold – are all inside the last 18 months of their current deals and are waiting for talks to commence,” James Pearce reported alongside Adam Crafton, David Ornstein and Oliver Kay for The Athletic. “They will want assurances about the direction the club is heading in before they commit their futures to Liverpool, and their bargaining position has arguably been strengthened by Klopp’s decision to leave in the summer.”
There is an expectation, as things currently stand, that Xabi Alonso will lead the pack of potential managerial candidates for the role in question.
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Liverpool must get this right
Whilst all three stars have shown no signs of wishing to cut short their Anfield careers, you can never really know what surprises are in store after our head coach’s shock announcement.
We’d expect our No.66, a Scouser born and bred, to be most willing to extend his stay and further cement his legacy at Liverpool.
Likewise, Van Dijk has appeared re-energised by the responsibility of the armband handed down to him following Jordan Henderson’s summer exit.
The biggest question mark of all, perhaps, hovers over the head of our Egyptian King amid ongoing interest from Saudi Arabia.
That will be a situation to watch closely come the summer transfer window.